Is Big Brother listening on your smartphone?

Published: Saturday, June 15, 2013 at 5:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Friday, June 14, 2013 at 4:50 p.m.

PALM COAST — News that a civilian contractor for the National Security Agency leaked information about top-secret government surveillance programs targeting millions of phone records and data from Internet companies has generated a debate about finding a balance between searching for terrorists and maintaining privacy rights.

But beyond the larger Constitutional issues, the use of smartphones and online technology has become a normal part of everyday business and personal use. The revelations about the government programs comes at a time when more and more consumers are concerned about identity theft and online privacy issues.

To find out what all this could mean for consumers and business owners, Ky Ekinci, co-founder of Office Divvy in Palm Coast, offers the local spin.

Does news that the NSA has been tapping into Internet data and telephone records change how people should view the security of their computers and smartphones?

Any harvestable digital footprint is harvestable by a hacker, typically, regardless, so the NSA is doing the same thing. Even if Congress were to prevent the NSA from doing so, there are ways of harvesting people's information legally or illegally.

We should all be aware of the fact that when we're on social media, browsing the Internet or on a smartphone, we are trackable and our information is leaving some footprint out there.

How confident are you that using high-tech devices for business is safe and secure?

Are we more prone to corporate espionage and other things? The short answer is, unfortunately, yes.

There is a concern. In corporate America, the change from the Blackberry device has been slow because it is less prone for that kind of footprint. While other devices have more capabilities, some people look at them as not as secure.

We should all be aware. There is no truly confidential email or document sharing if you're using a cloud service. You are always prone to hacking or people looking at your emails.

What can consumers do to ensure the safety and security of their online transactions and smartphone use?

Strong passwords are important. Not using the same password for more than two platforms is probably sensible to reduce the chances of getting hacked. But even with that, there is a digital footprint. If you have strong opinions that could hurt your company's business or your career, don't put them out there on social media in the first place. If you don't care about it, then there's no problem.

Do you think this scandal will put a damper on the use of high-tech devices for business?

I don't think so. I think all this talk is going to create an opportunity, perhaps, for new services and new businesses.

Some of these do exist today but they are not as popular, like virtual private gateways that scramble your IP address or encryption services for email and GPS jammers and things of that nature.

Maybe there will be other opportunities for businesses to create an additional layer of protection.

<p>PALM COAST &mdash; <i>News that a civilian contractor for the National Security Agency leaked information about top-secret government surveillance programs targeting millions of phone records and data from Internet companies has generated a debate about finding a balance between searching for terrorists and maintaining privacy rights. </p><p>But beyond the larger Constitutional issues, the use of smartphones and online technology has become a normal part of everyday business and personal use. The revelations about the government programs comes at a time when more and more consumers are concerned about identity theft and online privacy issues. </p><p>To find out what all this could mean for consumers and business owners, Ky Ekinci, co-founder of Office Divvy in Palm Coast, offers the local spin.</i> </p><p></p><p><b>Does news that the NSA has been tapping into Internet data and telephone records change how people should view the security of their computers and smartphones?</b> </p><p>Any harvestable digital footprint is harvestable by a hacker, typically, regardless, so the NSA is doing the same thing. Even if Congress were to prevent the NSA from doing so, there are ways of harvesting people's information legally or illegally. </p><p>We should all be aware of the fact that when we're on social media, browsing the Internet or on a smartphone, we are trackable and our information is leaving some footprint out there. </p><p><b>How confident are you that using high-tech devices for business is safe and secure?</b> </p><p>Are we more prone to corporate espionage and other things? The short answer is, unfortunately, yes. </p><p>There is a concern. In corporate America, the change from the Blackberry device has been slow because it is less prone for that kind of footprint. While other devices have more capabilities, some people look at them as not as secure. </p><p>We should all be aware. There is no truly confidential email or document sharing if you're using a cloud service. You are always prone to hacking or people looking at your emails. </p><p><b>What can consumers do to ensure the safety and security of their online transactions and smartphone use?</b> </p><p>Strong passwords are important. Not using the same password for more than two platforms is probably sensible to reduce the chances of getting hacked. But even with that, there is a digital footprint. If you have strong opinions that could hurt your company's business or your career, don't put them out there on social media in the first place. If you don't care about it, then there's no problem.</p><p><b>Do you think this scandal will put a damper on the use of high-tech devices for business?</b> </p><p>I don't think so. I think all this talk is going to create an opportunity, perhaps, for new services and new businesses. </p><p>Some of these do exist today but they are not as popular, like virtual private gateways that scramble your IP address or encryption services for email and GPS jammers and things of that nature. </p><p>Maybe there will be other opportunities for businesses to create an additional layer of protection.</p>